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BRITAINS ADDERS can also bite if picked up
» the Health Protection Agency's National Poisons Information Service (NPIS) warned people to leave snakes in the countryside alone following dozens of incidents of bites caused by people picking up venomous adders.

People sought advice over adder bites 196 times between 2009 and 2011, according to NPIS figures. In around half the cases, a person had picked up an adder, the only venomous snake living wild in England, Scotland and Wales. Professor Simon Thomas, director of NPIS Newcastle, said: "Adder numbers have decreased in recent years so they are rare but still present in certain areas. They usually keep well out of sight, but in the summer months are active because the weather is warmer. "Because they are well camouflaged, people can accidentally tread on them, which is when they can bite. They can also bite if picked up." Although bites can occur between February and October, experts say they are most common in the warmer summer months.